Assassins
by Sleeping Tiger
Summary: The Jellicles are cats that live in relative peace. But the world is full of others that may not be so happy with a peaceful life. When their paths cross, the Jellicle cats will never be the same. New: Chapter 2: Things are reaching a boiling point.
1. Prologue

Chapter update

_A/N: I can't believe it. I'm nervous. I'm ACTUALLY nervous about posting again on . Perhaps I've been removed from the community for too long. I don't know what the current trends are, have no idea how this will be accepted. But okay…here we go. A story that I started writing over three years ago. I've only now rediscovered it and have all the notes organized. So without further ado…_

_This story is rated M for character deaths, violent scenes, implied sex, and mature issues. Please excuse my use of OC's. As a rule of fanfiction, they aren't usually good, but I tried my best to make them acceptable to fanfiction. I do not own the canon characters of the musical CATS. That is T.S. Eliot and Andrew Lloyd Webber's privilege.  
_

**Prologue:**

None of them could ever explain it – that inexplicable need to be near one another. Perhaps the fact that they were Jellicles (if that meant anything at all) was why they felt drawn to each other. But there was no other time they felt near to each other than during a full moon. The Jellicle Ball had been a month prior, and while this meeting had very little importance by comparison, they still felt that pull. As the day was waning to night, the growing brilliance of the moonlight brought with it Jellicles from all walks of life to each other. Whatever life they had among humans or in the streets didn't matter anymore when they were together in the junkyard. For the night of the full moon, this was their home and where they belonged. And it called to them from near and far.

-=-=-=-=-=-

Alonzo looked up from his spot on the pillow he had claimed his own. Cassandra lay next to him, her muscles stiff. "What's the matter?" Alonzo asked, rolling onto his back, paw stretching up in the air.

"How can you ignore that call?" she asked, turning her head to look at him. He took the moment to admire her face, thinking to himself that no matter what the night brought, how many queens he saw, or how many toms courted her, just a moment ago, she was his. And as long as he could ignore the call of the rising moon, she would remain his.

"You need to lighten up," he said, closing his eyes and purring at the feeling of satisfaction. "They won't miss us."

"I'll miss them," Cassandra said. Nevertheless, he felt her body lay against him again. Still uptight, but for the moment it would do.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" He asked, turning so he could wrap an arm around his Abyssinian queen.

"Thank you, I _do_ know." He gave her a look. She smiled at him. "Well, that's why I get all the prizes at the cat shows."

"No, not beautiful to _humans_," Alonzo said, waving a paw to dismiss the comment. "Beautiful to _cats_."

"Alonzo, are you saying_ that's_ the only reason you're with me right now?" Cassandra asked, trying to sound offended.

"It's certainly not because you win _prizes at cat shows_." He smiled at her, giving her a peck on top of her head. "We should probably get going, huh?"

"Okay, just a minute!" It took her a moment to lift her weary body. Then she dutifully began grooming herself, giving him a look to do the same.

"Why?" he asked, mechanically following her lead.

"So they won't know why we're late!"

"…Cassie, I really have no problem with them knowing why we're late."

Cassandra giggled, looking at him and smiling. "Imagine Deuteronomy coming up to you and commenting on your _activities_ that caused you to be late to a gathering of the Jellicles."

Alonzo snorted with amusement. "He'd probably approve. Add some kittens to the tribe that aren't directly related to him or one of the older cats. 'Fresh blood.'"

"Who said anything about kittens!" Cassandra asked, her fur ruffling at the idea. "My owners would sooner drown any kittens I had that they hadn't chosen a stud to."

Alonzo looked at her, shocked. She, herself, seemed amazed at what she had just said. Unsure how to take this comment, the two continued to groom in awkward silence.

After each had licked the scent of the other off their fur, Alonzo got up, stretched, then deliberately rubbed his body against Cassandra. He heard her scoff in annoyance as he made his way out.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Munkustrap walked up to the kittens. Quite a few of them had continued playing as though he weren't there. Jemima, however, raced up to him and rubbed against him in greeting. The silver tom smiled.

Electra came up next, glaring at Jemima for hogging the attention. When Jemima finally let up, Electra went up to her father, rubbed up against him in greeting, then sat at his paws, giving Jemima a look as though daring her to try and intervene. Jemima just rolled her eyes, and went to play with her friends.

Electra then smiled up at her father, who was frowning down at her. "Are you two fighting about something?"

"No," Electra said. "Nothing at all!"

Munkustrap lay down, Electra curling up next to him. "I wish you two would get along better. I wasn't close to my siblings growing up. Now they're scattered all over. I wouldn't know where to find them if I tried."

"Does that make you sad?" she asked.

"Sometimes. I just wish I had known them better. It's not as though I don't have a wonderful family here," he said, nudging Electra for good measure. "But I sometimes wonder how different my life would be if my siblings and I were closer."

He broke off his train of thought as Demeter slowly walked up, a smile on her face just for her mate. Electra looked between the two, then her ears folded back.

"Honey," Demeter said as she came up to the two, "go play with the kittens."

"I want to stay with here."

"I need to talk to your father," she said in a stern tone. "It's very important."

Electra just glared at her mother. It wasn't until Munkustrap said, "Listen to your mother," that she begrudgingly got up, nuzzled her dad, and went to pounce on Etcetera, who had just been in the middle of imitating a big dog in a story she was telling. The squeak she made as she toppled to the ground, however, was not very convincing pollicle behavior.

"That kitten hates me," Demeter said, lying next to Munkustrap.

"Oh, she's at that age," Munkustrap said. "She's going to rebel."

"Why not against you?" Demeter asked.

Munkustrap shrugged. "The term is 'Daddy's little girl'. If _she_ were a _he_, then she would be a 'Momma's boy.'"

"I suppose," Demeter said with a sigh. "Munkustrap…"

"You're over-reacting," he said, watching the kittens.

"No, not about the kittens," she said, bristling with annoyance. "There is something really odd about tonight."

"Macavity?" he asked, his muscles going stiff. Her instincts were usually right about those things.

"I don't think so," she said. "I don't know. Maybe it's the storm that's coming, but I have a funny feeling."

Demeter said nothing else, but lay her head on her front paws, watching the kittens play. Munkustrap stayed quiet for a while, before sighing and standing up. "I should go make sure that Old Deuteronomy is okay," he said, before nuzzling Demeter and taking off.

The junkyard was bustling with activity thanks to the full moon. All the cats from the ball were, there, and cats he hadn't seen in more than a month were back just for tonight.

One cat who was exorbitantly busy, the railway cat, was scolding Mistoffelees for some reason or another. When Munkustrap saw Jennyanydots' fur seemed a little fluffier and more sparkly than it should have been, he could major a guess as to why. Jellylorum sat, transfixed, as the theatre cat, her idol, was speaking of the time he played Puss in Boots at a local theatre. Munkustrap knew Tugger had entered the yard by a sudden symphony of squeals that came from the other side of the yard.

Then in the shadows, he noticed a cat moving. Munkustrap bristled, "Who's there?"

A pair of eyes caught the moonlight, shining as they stared at him. Then slowly, Exotica came out, looking shocked that she was being treated in such a way.

"Oh," Munkustrap said. "Sorry. You blend in so well with the dark."

"I'll take that as a compliment," she said, smiling at him. For some reason, the smile didn't put him at ease. Exotica was just as her name implied – exotic, odd, bewildering. "Have you seen Cassie? I've been wanting to talk to her."

"No, but she doesn't exactly make an entrance, now does she?" He smiled to be polite, then made his way past her towards Admetus, who was regaling Bombalurina about his last performance at the ball.

"And then I took a big flying leap!"

"I know," she said, leaning against a tire, checking her nails. "I saw. I was there."

"But did you see when I did those kickies over Munkustrap's head?"

"I remember a very annoyed tabby, yes...I recall." At that, Bombalurina looked up. Relief swept across her face. "Munkus! Why don't you have a talk with your former dance partner over here while I go look for Tugger." She took the chance while Admetus turned to look at Munkustrap to slip away.

"But he wasn't my…" It was too late, Bombalurina was gone. The brown and white cat looked hopefully at Munkustrap. "Admetus, I would love to stay and chat, but I have to look for Old Deuteronomy."

Munkustrap trotted past Admetus, who was obviously disappointed, towards the entrance of the junkyard where he caught sight of Cassandra making her way in. She caught sight of him to, and came up to him, rubbing against him, a coy smile on her face. "Good evening, tiger."

"Exotica's looking for you," he said. "Why is your fur all messed up?"

Cassandra's eyes went wide as she looked down at her fur. It was only slightly messed up, but with such sleek fur under the moonlight, it was noticeable. Cassandra quickly recovered from her shock. "Uh, catnip. Those humans... know we lose all control around that stuff…" She quickly brushed her fur with her paw.

Then he noticed Alonzo trotting up to the entrance. Munkustrap looked between the two, then narrowed his eyes. "Lost control, huh?"

"Where was Exotica, did you say?"

"Nice segue," he said as he pointed her in the right direction. Cassandra gave him a little look, but smiled as she glanced at Alonzo, then went to find Exotica.

Alonzo raced up to Munkustrap, slightly out of breath. "You wouldn't _believe_ the _incredibly plausible story_ of why I'm late."

"You could have at least waited a few minutes before Cassandra got here to make an entrance. _That _would have been plausible."

"Yeah, well," Alonzo said, shrugging. "I wasn't the one who wanted to keep it secret. Where are the festivities?" The two turned suddenly as thunder boomed through the air. There were a few screams from the junkyard. "Ah," Alonzo said. "Festivities: dead as a bird on the doorstep." Munkustrap gave Alonzo a curious look. "What? I may not have a human, but I know what cats do with the birds they catch. You sick, sick house cats."

"I've never done that," Munkustrap said.

"The analogy still stands. So…Old Deuteronomy?"

"I've been looking for him. Demeter…has a bad feeling about tonight." At that, Alonzo looked over his shoulder, then nodded Munkustrap over with him. They rounded a corner and in the distance, Old Deuteronomy was walking towards the center of the junkyard.

"You knew he was there, and you didn't help him?" Munkustrap asked, walking quickly in the direction of the elder cat.

"I was going to, before I saw you! I just forgot!" The two them raced up to Old Deuteronomy to help the old cat on his wobbly legs.

-=-=-=-=-=-

The night had gone by in a whirl of laughter, activities, and meeting up with old friends. It was just the way Alonzo hoped it would be – no dangerous villainous cats kidnapping elderly toms. He even sidled up to Munkustrap, who was batting at a light that was flickering on and off as Mistoffelees worked to entertain the kittens.

"No Macavity," Alonzo said.

"Better safe than sorry," he said, looking over to Alonzo. "She's usually right about these things. Must be the storm."

Clouds had come in to cover the night sky. As the moon disappeared behind the clouds, the cats decided it was time to leave. Thunder was rumbling not far from where they were, and they would soon need to take shelter. So they said their goodbyes, and went back to respective homes or got cozy in their dens.

No one could foresee how the shadows that had laid perfectly still during their festivities would grow without the moon to keep them at bay, and give way to the cats who were hiding in the darkness.

While Alonzo walked off, Cassandra by his side, a flash of thunder blinded him to the sight of an elder Jellicle cat being grabbed by a few pairs of paws. The following booming thunder muffled the cat's protest before he was stifled and stolen into the night, where the protectors couldn't protect him.


	2. Chapter 1

_A/N: Thanks to those who are glad to see me back! Makes me really happy. I will do my best to make this a great story. I was planning on updating sooner, but if you knew the week I had...! Anyway, enjoy the chapter..._

* * *

Chapter 1:

When Munkustrap entered the junkyard the next day, the feeling of tension was palpable. He could only hope that the rain, which had now slowed to a drizzle, was soaking everyone's fur, and that was the cause of the tension. But, no…it was more than that. He could practically smell it in the air. There was something odd about the junkyard.

Immediately, he went to investigate. He walked with caution towards the center of the junkyard, looking around for anything out of the ordinary. He came up to the edge of the old ford. Something wasn't right… Munkustrap sniffed the Ford, and could tell right away. No amount of rain could wash away the scent of a foreign cat in the junkyard.

Munkustrap jumped on the Ford, sniffing the metal, and found another scent, mingled with the scent of a cat that was familiar. The pouring rain washed away most of it, and it was hard to pinpoint. Munkustrap sneered, trying to discern the smell.

"Munkustrap!" The tom glanced back to see Jennyanydots walking swiftly up to him. She was soaked to the bone, but didn't seem to mind for some reason. "Thank the Everlasting Cat you're here, dear. Jellylorum is out of her mind with worry! She thinks something has happened to Gus."

Munkustrap looked back at the spot where he could smell the other cats. He sniffed again, and with the new information, was certain. As the silver tom looked forward, he saw fur that had come off on a corner. One of the cats must have rubbed up against it, the rain collected it in a corner. Now water steadily trickled down the clumped fur. "Strange cats," Munkustrap said. "They must have taken him."

"What was that?" Jennyanydots asked, climbing up to where the tom was. "The water, dear, it's splashing into every nook and cranny. I couldn't hear a word of what you said."

"There were cats here watching us last night," Munkustrap said, sitting down on the Ford, looking at the fur, baffled. "That's what Demeter sensed." Finally, he looked directly at Jennyanydots. "And they've taken old Asparagus…"

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Alonzo loved the rain. Most cats hated getting drenched, but Alonzo was an exception. There was something cleansing about it to which a sunny day held no comparison. He sat on the pavement, ears back, face pointed up to allow the drizzle which was slowing to a stop to wash his face. He turned around and smiled at Cassandra, who was watching him from the window, bristling.

"It's not that bad!" he said, laughing.

Her voice came muffled through the glass. "It will take you weeks to dry!"

"Hardly!" He got up and shook off a significant amount of rain water. His fur stood awkward in most places, but he didn't cared. He was an alley cat – who was he trying to impress? "It's stopping. If you have any hopes of coming to the junkyard, now is the time!"

"The streets are wet," Cassandra said, looking out towards the road. "Puddles…damp feet…wet dogs…"

"You _live_ with a dog!" Alonzo said, setting himself down beneath the window. "I'm sure he's soaked to the bone right now!"

Cassandra scoffed. "Lazareth hates storms. The sitter last night had to push him out with her bare hands. He's absolutely useless, really."

"Are you going to make me walk to the junkyard by myself?" He put his ears back. He didn't much like the thought.

"If you can dry yourself off in two seconds, as well as dry the streets, then I'll walk with you."

"Hmm," Alonzo muttered to himself, "I'm going to need to find Mistoffelees for that." To Cassandra, he said, "I'm just going to make a quick appearance, then."

Alonzo turned to go on his way. "Alonzo!" He looked up at Cassandra. She jumped from the windowsill, and in a few moments poked her head out the cat door flap. Alonzo smiled, thinking the queen was daring to join him. Instead, she asked, "Why are you so determined to stay near me?"

This question made the tom jerk his head back. Imagine, asking him a question like that! "Well, I thought that was obvious," he said, sitting down on his haunches. "I kinda really like you, Cassie."

Cassandra allowed the hint of a smile to show. "I can see that, but…" She took a moment, trying to consider how to say this. "You don't really seem like the type of tom who…stays around for a long time."

"What do you mean?" Alonzo asked while scratching his ear.

"Well…you're an alley cat."

"Right."

"A tom well liked by other queens."

"I like to think so."

"You…don't seem the type to stay in one spot." She let that sink in, but when it was obvious Alonzo wasn't sure what she meant, she sighed. "Or one queen, for that matter."

Alonzo's ears perked up, finally understanding what she meant. "You think I'm some sort of seducer of queens!" Cassandra grimaced, bracing for him to get angry with her. Instead, he laughed. Cassandra replaced her grimace with annoyance.

"Well, I saw the way you were with the other queens at the ball. You can see why I would assume such things! " she said.

"No, I can't," he said, getting up and turning to go. "Cassie, you've flitted around with the toms you wanted while I flitted around with the queens I wanted. In the end, I was just looking for the right queen to share every night with." He was about to go, but decided to add, "I'm hoping you feel the same…"

He didn't wait for her reaction. He wasn't sure he wanted it yet. He just trotted off toward the junkyard. He would meet with Cassandra later.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

When Alonzo entered the junkyard, the sun was breaking through the clouds, making the day muggy as the water evaporated around them. Normally, this made the cats prefer to stay inside or laze around, drying off in the sun. Instead, they were running around frantically, in quiet discussion with one another - a mild form of chaos that radiated with Munkustrap as the epicenter.

Alonzo sighed.

He walked up to the cats, catching bits and pieces of what they were worried about. Cats missing? Cats in the junkyard? He couldn't tell. As Munkustrap noticed his arrival, he excused himself from an in depth conversation with Skimbleshanks and raced over to Alonzo. "We're taking a head count. We just need to account for a few cats...have you seen anyone on your way here?"

"I just left Cassie," Alonzo said. "Why?"

"No one else?"

"No. What's wrong, Munk?"

"Some cats took Gus last night."

Alonzo eyes widened. Then he looked around at the other cats who were nearby. "And…you felt the need to get everyone in a frenzy?"

"No," Munkustrap said, rolling his eyes. "Jennyanydots interrupted me when I was trying to figure out what happened. She ran over to Jellylorum to tell her what happened, screaming the news the whole way."

"You could have stopped her."

"What was I supposed to do, tackle her?" Munkustrap asked, exasperated. "I've been trying to figure out what happened, and told her to get together a head count to make sure no more cats are missing."

"Well, wait a moment," Alonzo pulled Munkustrap to the side and talked in a whisper. "What makes you think that cats took Gus in the first place?"

"There was a distinct scent…some fur…Gus' scent mingled with it. I can make out around fourteen different cat scents in the junkyard so far."

"Fourt—so, Macavity _was_ here last night?"

"No," Munkustrap said, shocked at the news himself. "He and his cats have a very distinct…odor. I would have known it the moment I smelled it. These cats…they're not from around here."

Alonzo looked at the cats who were frantically trying to figure out who else might be missing. "Why would foreign cats want to take an old, helpless theatre cat? And why so many? It's not like he was going to put up a fight!"

"I don't know," Munkustrap said. At this, Plato came bounding into the junkyard. He looked around momentarily, caught sight of Munkustrap, and raced up to him.

"Old Deuteronomy is still at the vicarage," Plato said. "Pouncival is staying with him. I thought it was best for him to stay there until we figure out what's going on. He told me to tell you to keep the cats calm," Alonzo snorted, "and said that you might have to ask help where you don't want to - whatever that means."

Munkustrap thanked and dismissed the young tom. Plato walked over to Victoria, who seemed upset about the elder cat gone missing. Munkustrap shook his head. "Might have to ask help where I don't want to…"

Alonzo shook his head. "Why would he jump to that conclusion?"

"He knows something that we don't," Munkustrap said. Then he shrugged. "If the first thing he says is that, he must have been expecting this." Munkustrap looked up. "But why wouldn't he tell me before?"

"Maybe you should ask him."

"No," Munkustrap said, getting up. "His response was too quick. This needs to be done now."

Alonzo's ears went back. Munkustrap had a determined look on his face. "Hey, you know, I could go over to Old D's and ask him what he's thinking while you go take care of things."

Munkustrap gave Alonzo a glance. "That could work. But be tactful." Alonzo nodded. Munkustrap took a deep breath. "And I'll go talk to Macavity."

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Macavity was not a patient cat. Oh, sure, when he was hatching a plan to make someone's life a little more miserable, he had all the patience in the world. The same went for doing long-division and having multiple escape plans. For things of such importance, it was imperative to have patience. But for minions who couldn't quite say exactly what they wanted to say when they needed to say it, well…he had very little patience.

"What is it you want to tell me?" he asked to the sputtering black cat, whose head was lowered. The wretched little thing was visibly shaking.

"Well, you see, sir…there is…there is someone here to see you."

"And who is this someone?" he asked, looking at his nails. His coat may be dusty, his whisker uncombed, but his nails were vital for getting his point across. They were immaculately cleaned for doing just such a gesture. And after they were used, he cleaned them again until they shined.

"Well…it's a Jellicle, sir."

This caught Macavity's interest. "A Jellicle?"

"Er…the black and grey one, sir."

"Ah. That one," he said with distain. "Send him in." The little black tom crawled low to the ground as he made his way out of the room, and moments later, Munkustrap entered. The silver tom glowered at the cats on the other side of the door, before turning his look on the ginger cat. Macavity gave a low, dry chuckle. "Well, I see the rain has flushed out some sewer rats."

Munkustrap walked up to Macavity, still glaring at him. Macavity took pleasure in few things in life – the look on the other cat's face at that moment was one of those things. "I need to ask you something," Munkustrap said.

"The answer is no."

"I haven't asked yet!"

"I like to be succinct about these things."

"You don't even know what "these things" are!"

"Allow me to rephrase for you in words that are in your lower range of intelligence – Whatever it is that you, a Jellicle cat, want from me, my answer is no."

"Macavity," Munkustrap said, rolling his eyes. "I don't want to be here either, but Old Deuteronomy told me that I would need to come and talk to you about this issue."

"You mean he hasn't died of old age, yet?" Macavity asked, the semblance of a smile appearing on his face. "Wouldn't that make you king of human trash?"

"Alright," Munkustrap said, puffing out his chest. "First of all, it's _junk_ in a _junkyard_. Secondly, it's Tugger who would be in charge, not me. And third--"

"Ah, yes," Macavity said. "That must make you very angry to know that someone so irresponsible in your eyes would be in charge of everything."

"Gus is missing," Munkustrap said. Smart, that he finally just came to his point, but that ruined Macavity's fun. "And Old Deuteronomy wants me to ask you for help. Unlike you, I respect my father's wishes, no matter how unpleasant they may be."

"How noble of you," Macavity said in a droll tone. "But I haven't had anything to do with - whatever that old cat's name is - disappearing, and I won't have anything to do with bringing him back. I think the old leader of the Jellicles is losing his senses as time passes."

Munkustrap sighed. "There were other cats involved. Fourteen whose scent I caught. Cats that aren't from around here. And I've been thinking the entire walk over here why he would tell me to take such drastic actions as to ask an unkempt relation of his for help. I can only assume that it affects you, too. That these cats are stronger than you, smarter than you, perhaps more violent than you. The only thing I know for sure is that they at least _groom_ themselves more than you, if nothing else!" Munkustrap seemed satisfied with himself, but Macavity just smiled.

"Aren't you clever," he said. "Trying to make me concede by playing the 'ego' card. But I'm very good at playing cards. If I see you around here again, I'll tell the others to kill you on sight. Now, leave. You have the junkyard stench all over you."

Munkustrap glared at Macavity, ears slightly back, but said nothing. He walked towards the door. As he was halfway out, crossing paths with the lackeys at the door, Macavity called out, "And say hello to Demeter for me." Munkustrap stopped cold. "She didn't seem to mind the 'unkempt' fur one bit. Had other things to worry about."

Munkustrap turned and launched himself towards Macavity. Just as suddenly as he was on the attack, he was pinned to the ground by Macavity's henchmen. The ginger tom just laughed as Munkustrap struggled to get out of the grasp of the toms. The toms took him away, and Macavity could hear the sounds of struggles and possible punches landing. The struggle got farther away until he couldn't hear them anymore.

Alone, Macavity was determined to get back to what he was doing before the interruption, but he couldn't remember what it was. His mind was filled with the thought of why Old Deuteronomy would want him to be told about a missing tom cat he couldn't even remember?

A few moments passed. Then he called for one of his nearby lackeys.

A brown tabby entered. "Yes, sir?"

Macavity forgot for a moment to be threatening. His thoughts were on something else. "When was the last time anyone saw Griddlebone?"


	3. Chapter 2

_A/N: I was taught not to point out my own mistakes with creative works - it will be all that people see after wards. ....but I can't resist. I'm not particularly fond of this chapter - one of those "leading up to really important stuff" chapters. The only thing I dislike more than this chapter is the rough draft for the next chapter, which needs major work. MAJOR work. That having been said, thank you for your reviews! They keep me going! And enjoy!_

-=-=-=-=-=-

Chapter 2:

Munkustrap walked to the junkyard, feeling bruised and beaten. He could feel his top lip was broken, the right side puffing up around the wound. Fortunately, that was the only bloody cut he had on him. Everything else was just sore. No part hurt more than the left side where he took a blow from one of the cats when he was pinned down, unable to defend himself.

However, while they may have outnumbered him three to one, they were no match for him when he was freed from their grip. He would have smiled to himself if his lips had allowed it. The cats at the junkyard didn't know it, but he could be a ruthless fighter when he wanted to be. Growing up with Macavity as a brother, he learned how to fight back hard, even if he never won.

He saw the entrance to the junkyard, where a few cats were gathered. They were waiting for him, apparently, as Mistoffelees pointed him out when he was walking up. All heads turned, shifting on their paws as though wanting to run up to him. Munkustrap did his best to walk with dignity, despite the pain in his side. He could do nothing about his lip, though.

The young tuxedoed tom raced up to him, stopping short when he saw Munkustrap's face. "What happened to you!?" Mistoffelees asked.

"I don't have time to talk about that now."

"Does this have to do with the cats that invaded the junkyard?"

"Don't want to talk about this at the moment…"

"Are you limping? Why are you limping?"

Munkustrap sighed. "I…fell."

"From where? How could you fall and hit your face just on your lip? And to have a limp? Are you okay?" Mistoffelees put a paw on the other tom's shoulder, but Munkustrap shrugged it off.

"Look, I don't want to talk about it at the moment. Let's just say I tried to find help to get Gus back, and it didn't go so well."

"From who?" Mistoffelees said. "Do you know who took Gus?"

"Mistoffelees," Munkustrap said, sighing. "I am begging you. Stop. Talking."

"But…why?" Mistoffelees asked in a soft voice as Munkustrap walked past him. The tom ignored the tuxedoed cat. Rather, he walked up to everyone else, Mistoffelees following close to his heels.

"Everlasting Cat!" Skimbleshanks said as he saw the tom. "What in the name of catnip happened to you?"

"Let's not talk about that right now," Munkustrap said. "What are you all gathered here for?"

"Well," Jellylorum said, "We were just talking with Mistoffelees to see if he could bring back Gus like he did Old Deuteronomy."

"And I was telling them," Mistoffelees interjected, "That if I don't know who has him, I won't be able to bring him back!"

"I see," Munkustrap said. Hearing the others suggestion for Mistoffelees was good to know, at least, in case they ever find out what has happened here. But for now, they could only speculate. As he walked towards the middle of the junkyard, he realized that speculation was, in fact, flourishing! From ransom (as though the Jellicles had anything to give) to forced improvisation (as acting was Gus' well known skill) to pure hatred of old cats (which was the most plausible suggestion). Finally, at the middle of the junkyard, Munkustrap received a break from the speculation as no one wanted the younger kittens to be worried. They seemed upset enough as it were.

"Daddy!" Electra came bounding up to him, and before Munkustrap could do anything to stop her, she had pummeled into him. Munkustrap groaned in pain. Electra immediately backed off and sat back, eyes wide in confusion and fear as her father held his side in pain. "Did I hurt you?"

"Ah…" he said, looking at the other concerned cats. "I was already hurting, Electra. You didn't know," he added quickly as she looked like she was going to cry. "I didn't want you to know. It's not your fault, sweetie."

Jemima walked up and sat next to her sister, looking confused as well. "What happened?" she asked.

"Isn't that the question of the day," Mistoffelees muttered, walking off with his tail high in the air.

"I'll tell you later," he said, as Jennyanydots helped him up.

"Well," said a voice from within a broken down bureau. "Look whose bothered showing up." The Rum Tum Tugger got up, arched his back, stretched his back legs, then hopped down to the ground, where Etcetera flew to his side. Electra raced over to join her friend. "Munkustrap, will you tell everyone to stop worrying about the theatre cat. Where the hell did they get this idea that, 'Oh, no…Gus is in danger,' anyway?"

"From me," Munkustrap said. "Listen, we can't do anything right now. All we can do is sit and wait. Let's not worry." He gave his best smile with his lip in it's current condition and shrugged. "Gus once played Growltiger - the terror of the Thames. He could do it again."

Demeter had come to Munkustrap's side by this point. "Oh, my…what happened to your face?" Munkustrap sighed. This was going to be a long day.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Cassandra was grooming her fur on the couch. Lazarus, the German Shepard, was sitting on the floor, staring intently at Cassandra. "No, Lazarus," she said. "I just took a bath."

Lazarus whined, scooting closer, licking his lips.

"No," she said, flicking her tail in annoyance. "We can play later." The dog nudged her with his wet nose, leaving a damp spot on her back. "Ooooh!" Cassandra cried, sitting up and looking at her back. "Do you know how hard that spot is to clean?!" Lazareth made a little playful growling noise as he nudged her with his muzzle, knocking her over. Cassandra responded by batting him with her paw. "I said NO! Bad dog! Bad dog!"

"Cassandra!" The Abyssinian bolted upright. She looked out the window to see Alonzo standing outside, panting.

"Oh, come in!" she said, then started grooming her fur as fast as possible. By the time Alonzo was at the foot of the couch, she had managed to make her fur almost as sleek as she would have liked it to be.

"Cassie, I have to—_No, Lazarus_!" But it was too late. The dog had completely knocked Alonzo over, and with the cat on his back, Lazarus started licking the cat on his belly. Alonzo responded by digging his nails into the dog's muzzle and biting his lip. Lazarus yelped and pulled back. He then lunged at the cat again. Now the dog had Alonzo's entire head in his mouth.

"Lazarus, NO!" Cassandra said, jumping down from the couch and smacking him with her paw. "Bad dog! Bad!" Lazarus whined and backed away, leaving Alonzo's head coated with slobber. The tom's eyes were wide with shock and fear.

"He was going to kill me…"

"He was _not_ going to kill you," Cassandra said. "He never chomps down. That's how he plays."

"My head was in his mouth!" Alonzo screamed, pointing accusingly at the dog, arching his back and hissing.

"I know," Cassandra said. "He does that to me, too." Alonzo stared at Cassandra in disbelief. "And if you tell this to any of the other cats, _I_ will chomp down on your head!"

Alonzo sighed, putting his paw to his head. "The other cats. Cassie, I just came from Old Deuteronomy. The junkyard – it's chaos. Gus is missing. Cats have taken him. Old Deuteronomy thinks we're next. And it's not just us, it's--"

Cassandra's ears folded back over her head. "What? Wait, Alonzo, take a breath, calm down. What are you talking about?"

"It's…it's too long of a story. I have to get back to the junkyard. But I wanted to tell you – don't leave this house no matter what. Lazarus can protect you," he said, eying the dog. Lazarus wagged his tail at the attention. "But I have to get back. I told Pouncival to stay with Old Deuteronomy, and I've hidden him at another location, but I have to go tell Munkustrap. _That's_ why he wanted him to go see Macavity! He's related to him!"

"Alonzo…you're not making much sense," Cassandra said.

Alonzo sighed and put a paw on her shoulder. "Just stay here where it's safe…alright?"

"Alright," she said, sitting down, trying to ingest everything. Alonzo turned to leave. He stopped at the cat door, then looked back at Cassandra.

"Cassie?"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

He didn't wait for an answer back. He just raced out the door. Cassandra stared; the only sound she could hear now was the soft whine of the German Shepard behind her.

-=-=-=-=-=-

Munkustrap looked up at the sky. A dark rain cloud loomed overhead. It seemed like it was going to pour any second. Things were beginning to look bleak for any hope of getting old Gus back that night.

Demeter pulled his head towards him, "I said hold still," she said as she licked his wound.

"Sorry." His eyes wandered as far as he could while Demeter cleaned his wound. He could see Electra sitting stiffly in a corner, staring at her parents, looking quite angry. "What's the matter with Electra?"

"She's probably upset because she unintentionally hurt you," Demeter said. Munkustrap didn't ask any more. Demeter hasn't asked him to elaborate on his wound, and he needed more time to think of an explanation that wouldn't get the junkyard up in arms. He had managed to lick the scent off him rather quickly, but he still didn't like that Demeter was so close. Still, she hadn't reacted to a scent of Macavity, so he had time to think about that.

"Look up," Demeter said. The tom tilted his head up, and she sat in front of him, looking closely at the wound. "I think it will be fine. Looks like it hurts, though."

Munkustrap tried to smile, but forgot his lip hurt and stopped before it would hurt anymore. For a moment, he had forgotten why he got into the fight to begin with. Then the memory of Macavity taunting him sent his stomach churning. He looked away, let out a sigh, remembered where he was, then looked at his beautiful mate. He nudged the queen playfully. "You're wonderful, you know that?"

Demeter smiled. "Where is this coming from?"

"You just are," he said, nuzzling her.

Demeter backed up suddenly. "Macavity!" Munkustrap bristled, smoothing his fur down.

"I can explain!" But Demeter had already shot into a nearby crevice, many of the kittens following her lead. Munkustrap looked around, dazed, when he realized all the cats were staring at one spot, before taking off into hiding. Then he turned to see the tom strolling down the junkyard as though he belonged there.

Munkustrap hoped he was there to help. He really did. But the older desire to beat the tom to a bloody pulp still coursed through his veins.

With the cats having scattered, Munkustrap appeared to be the only one left. Appeared to be. He knew the others were perfectly in ear shot.

Munkustrap watched as Macavity stood in the middle of the junkyard, not bothering to look around or even look at Munkustrap. Of course. He would expect Munkustrap to come up to him.

The silver tom sighed, begrudgingly coming up to the other tom. "You have some nerve," he growled.

"There's no time for that," Macavity said. He looked serious, so Munkustrap would take it that way. Munkustrap sighed and waved a paw for the tom to continue. "Griddlebone is missing…No one has seen her for five days now."

"_Five days_?" Munkustrap asked. "And you're only _now_ deciding to tell me this?"

"It's not abnormal for that queen to disappear from the clan for weeks on end. But when I ask for others to find her, she's usually found within the hour. They've found not hide nor fur. Have you seen Mungojerrie?"

Munkustrap jerked his head at the sudden change of inquiry. He hadn't thought about him being missing. Or Rumpelteazer, for that matter. They weren't at the meeting the night before. No one seemed to miss them. As they flitter around between the two places, no one thought to ask about them, either. Munkustrap shook his head in answer.

"I hadn't realized it until you left that they were missing, too."

A voice came from behind, "Wait a minute!" Mistoffelees popped his head out. He crept down low, crawling towards Munkustrap, then hiding behind him. He stared at Macavity - a cat who had it out for him ever since he foiled his plan on taking Old Deuteronomy - before looking to Munkustrap. "You went to see him? Is that why you're injured?"

Munkustrap opened his mouth to respond, but he knew it was too late. Other cats had popped out of their hiding spots, exchanging frantic whispers.

"It's complicated," Munkustrap said, talking to Mistoffelees, yet addressing the crowd.

"Complicated?!" screeched another voice. This one female and mad as hell. The other cats came out as Demeter stormed up to Munkustrap. She gave Macavity a deathly stare (which he responded to with a sinister smile) and then looked at Munkustrap. The silver tom had seen his queen angry before. He'd seen her frightened. He'd seen her hurt and confused. Somehow, the combination of all those traits made for a queen whose fur stuck out in every which way possible, and would even make Macavity take a step back (albeit subtle) from the queen. "An elder is missing, there is chaos in the junkyard, we don't know what's going to happen, and _you went to HIM_!?"

"Are you happy to see me?" Macavity asked.

Demeter shot backwards, "You stay away from me, you horrible bastard!"

The Rum Tum Tugger, who had been sent around the junkyard on patrol duty while Alonzo was gone, rounded the corner muttering to himself in annoyance. He stopped dead when he saw Macavity. Then his face lit up. "Hey!! Macky! How have you been?"

Macavity just glanced at the fluffy cat, then looked back at Munkustrap. "If Rumpelteazer and Mungojerrie haven't been here, that means they are missing. They're terribly enthusiastic thieves, but thieves none the less. They do some of my best work. I would hate for them to die before I had a chance to give them another assignment."

Munkustrap sighed. "You're genuine concern is touching." He then looked at Demeter. "I had no choice. Old Deuteronomy wanted me to."

"Why would Old Deuteronomy want you to go to _him_?" Demeter asked, glaring between both toms.

Tugger, who had strolled up to the three cats and was now listening with mild interest, shrugged at Demeter's question. "Family reunion?"

It took a moment for Demeter to understand what Tugger meant. Then horror replaced whatever name for emotion she felt before. "You're _related_!?" A few of the cats in the junkyard gasped. Munkustrap turned to Tugger, giving him a look to kill.

"I didn't know you were keeping it secret," Tugger responded, putting his hands up in defense. "I thought everyone knew."

"About US," Munkustrap said, pointing between Tugger and himself. "They didn't need to know about Macavity!"

Macavity looked at Demeter, a devious smile on his face. "So it doesn't make me a bastard if we have the same father." Demeter looked at though she wanted to say something, then like she was going to be sick.

Munkustrap stepped in between them. "Don't talk to her. Ow!"

Demeter had smacked Munkustrap on his sore side. "Don't you dare defend me, you wretched liar! Ow!"

Demeter turned around to see Electra had bitten her tail. "Don't hit my dad!"

"Whoa," Tugger said, stepping between Munkustrap and Macavity. "Look, we have bigger issues here than that the tribe is a little more related than some of us thought." Bombalurina had crept forward to take Demeter away as she was now on the verge of crying. Munkustrap wanted to go and comfort Demeter, but Tugger pulled him back. "From what I understand, anyway. Obviously, I missed something! Care to fill me in?"

Two voices, belonging to Tantomile and Coricopat, said in unison, "Intruders!" Munkustrap saw the two looking around for some perceived threat. Then their eyes focused on something above and behind Munkustrap. Everyone turned to see what they had seen.

At the top of a heap of junk, looking down on them all, was a dark tom cat, almost as dark as the rain clouds that framed his body. Munkustrap hissed at the tom. He wanted to tell the others to run, but it was too late. Cats were coming out from every conceivable nook and cranny.

They were surrounded.


End file.
